Is HSBC's conveyancing panel a case of blue sky thinking? Photograph: Frank Baron for the Guardian

Has HSBC's decision to introduce a panel of lawyers for mortgage customers caused delays? Yes, according to some in the property industry.

The lender announced in January that it would be using a panel of 43 firms to do its conveyancing, and that borrowers could either have one of the panel do their legal work too, at a fixed cost, or choose to use their own solicitor and pay a separate fee of £192 (£160 plus VAT) for HSBC's lawyer.

The announcement led to criticism from law firms who were, of course, set to lose work as a result. Since then they have lobbied the bank to change its mind, and even set up an online petition, which has so far gathered 2,000 signatures.

The Law Society has claimed the panel was causing delays to purchases, and that estate agents were warning borrowers against applying for loans from the bank.

In a letter to its members (pdf) it said: "It is clear that for house buyers using HSBC that delays are emerging and the Society understands that a number of estate agents are beginning to associate HSBC mortgage customers with delays to the process, which threaten what are already very delicate property chains. We are aware that some estate agents are advising caution to consumers who are considering an HSBC mortgage."

It is certainly true estate agents are getting twitchy about the lender. Laura Peters of Pickwick Estates in West Dulwich, London, said she had seen several sales nearly fall through as a result of delays, including the purchase of a £1.3m property. "The people selling get fed up of the delays – they just assume the people buying are messing around, they don't realise it's because of the bank."

Peters said the problems started pretty much as soon as HSBC switched to its new panel. "It's to the point that if anyone puts in an offer and they say they are getting the mortgage from HSBC we are actually saying that it isn't going to happen."

Karen Seagrave, senior negotiator at estate agents Barnes Kingsnorth in Tunbridge Wells, says about "another week or so" is being added to the process when buyers opt to use their own solicitor alongside HSBC's. "We had a purchaser who was using a local solicitor for the conveyancing, but at the point when they usually would have been ready to sign contracts, the paperwork then had to be sent over to HSBC's conveyancer to be checked over by somebody else," she says.

"There is then also a possibility that the HSBC conveyancer may well come back with additional enquiries to be answered, causing a further delay in the process."

She adds: "It's down to buyer choice – we would never say to someone that they shouldn't use a particular lender, but we will explain to them that there might be delays so they can make an informed decision, as not all buyers are aware of the changes and how they could affect them."

Peter Ambrose, director of law firm The Partnership, said dealing with HSBC's lawyers on behalf of some of his clients was proving "a nightmare". He had a first-time buyer attempting to beat the stamp duty change on 24 March who he advised to exchange and complete on the same day because he so distrusted the bank's ability to arrange everything on time.

"We haven't lost a deal, but what the new panel does do is introduce huge delays and additional costs for our clients," he said.

However, James Thorpe, a spokesman for HSBC, denied there were problems with the panel. "We are definitely quicker than the industry average and we are confident that the panel is working successfully," he said. "More than 99% of people going through the process are completely without any complaints at all."

Thorpe says the industry average for conveyancing is 81 days, and points out that the panel hasn't even been in operation that long.

Buying agent Jo Eccles says her clients had experienced delays with HSBC, but the problem had been with getting mortgage valuations instructed rather than with conveyancing, and she believed the problem might be a huge influx of applications driven by the bank's competitive rates.

We'd like to hear from you if you have recently applied for a HSBC mortgage. Did estate agents or solicitors warn you off? Did you have problems, or are you happy with how things worked?